Source: Lexie Moreland / Getty
Let’s hear it for Kelly Rowland’s dress! The fashion icon oozed old-school Hollywood glamour with a modern twist as she graced Harlem’s Fashion Row (HFR) red carpet and stage for their 16th Annual Fashion Show & Style Awards. Held Sept. 6 at the historic Apollo Theatre, the event kicked off New York Fashion Week (NYFW) for the culture.
NYFW For The Culture
This year’s HFR event was themed “The Remix.” Similar to previous years, it was an epic night filled with celebrity appearances, endearing speeches and commentary, surprising performances, and, of course, dope fashion.
The show started with a private cocktail hour and a Dream in Black Rising Future Makers Showcase sponsored by AT&T, highlighting talent from HBCUs. The evening ended with a performance by Doug E. Fresh, and Disney’s Create 100 initiative. A global celebration of creativity that marks 100 years of Disney storytelling, Disney’s exhibit presented Black creators Taofeek Abijako, Coline Creuzot, Clarence Ruth, Chandricka Carr, Kimminski Adams, and Daziah Green to end the night.
Three Black designers also took center stage following the night’s awards. Designers included Nicole Benefield, Aaron Potts (A. Potts), and Megan Renee.
Kelly’s Husband Presents HFR’s Fashion Icon Award
While the night featured many memorable moments – Kelendria Trene Rowland’s appearance during the night was unforgettable. All eyes were on the former “Destiny’s Child” songstress as she received the Fashion Icon Award.
Just before she arrived at the podium, her husband, Tim Weatherspoon, gave a speech that had every woman saying, “Aww.” It was a whole vibe.
Below is an excerpt of Tim’s speech to his “real-life chocolate Barbie.”
“You have always been my icon, not just in fashion but in all that you do, including raising our sons. You do it all with style and grace. And, you continue to innovate and inspire. On my flight here, I thought, let me see what your toughest critics are saying. You know all the experts in the comment section. As you all know, that section is not for the faint of heart. Forgive me if I don’t get these sayings right, as I am not well-versed in the comment lingo. But my assumption is that these are good …. ‘Kelly eats the girls every time. Fire emoji, fire emoji, fire emoji she does not miss. An icon’ …. Whether you are on stage, on a red carpet, or rolling in sweats with Titan and Noah, one thing remains the same: you are beautiful inside and out.”
Kelly Rowland’s Hollywood Glam Look
Responding, “I love that Black man,” Kelly Rowland graced the stage in an exaggerated black and white, sculpted corset gown. Her sleeves were balloon-style with texture and depth, the back of the dress was a criss-crossed fabric design showing the multihyphenate’s tiny waist, and the bottom was flowy and dramatic.
Like Tim said, the look was giving. Heart Eye Emoji. The “Motivation” artist took the mic and shared a story about her story in fashion.
“My history with fashion actually started, I’m sure you a lot of you know. Destiny’s Child was four country girls. Very country girls from Texas talking very loud. ‘Ls’ were ‘Ls’. And ‘As’ were ‘As.’ It was very different. So, they were very reluctant to dress us. They didn’t really dress us at all, to be honest. So, Tina took matters into her own hands. She dressed us. And we learned, I learned, then what it was like to start a trend. I remember what that felt like, the pride in it. But I also know that we are a part of that, too. We start the trends. We make what’s cool cool. So fashion should be grateful for us.”
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The stylish mother of two was one of many receiving HFR’s highest honors of the night. ASAP Rocky received the ‘Virgil Abloh Award.’ The ‘Editor of the Year Award’ was presented to Vogue’s Global Contributing Editor, Gabriella Karefa-Johnson. Wayman and Micah were named ‘Stylists of the Year.’ And Stella Jean and Johnny Nunez, received the ‘Designer of the Year Award’ and the ‘Hip Hop Trailblazer Award,’ respectively.
See video of Kelly’s speech and her SLAY below. For more, see HelloBeautiful’s social coverage.
Congratulations to Harlem’s Fashion Row on such a historic, hip-hop and fashion-filled night!
